Royal Society of Edinburgh Periodicals Collection

The Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) was
founded in 1783. Over two centuries its Library acquired a large
collection of periodicals, many of which were received by means of
exchange of the society's publications with those of learned
institutions all over the world.

Over 5,000 titles

In 1981 the RSE transferred its foreign periodicals to the
National Library of Scotland.

Since then the collection, now of over 5,000 different titles,
has been maintained by the Library. The exchange policy of the RSE
is still active and the collection is growing constantly, with well
over 600 periodical titles currently received.

Not held elsewhere

The scope of the collection is very wide, covering all aspects
of pure science. Although many titles are published in foreign
languages, the majority are now in English, or at the very least
have English abstracts.

Many of the titles are not held anywhere else in Scotland.

Some books and non-scientific titles are also received and these
are incorporated into general Library stock. Any items received
from a foreign government body are recorded and retained by the Official Publications
Unit within the Library.

Access

The collection arrived with an incomplete card catalogue which
has now been incorporated into the Library's main catalogue.

To find older material, it will sometimes be necessary to
consult us to arrange for us to search other sources for you.

Further enquiries about the collection and its access are
welcome: please email science@nls.uk.